Examining care-giving, emotional communication, and health outcomes among parents of children with mental illness: An attachment perspective

The purpose of this study was to examine the care-giving behaviors, emotional experiences, and emotional expression of parents of children with mental illness using an attachment theory framework. Two primary issues were addressed: (a) how parents' perceptions of their own care-giving behavior and emotional communication vary on the basis of attachment style, and (b) how parents' perceptions of care-giving and the emotional communication of frustration and affection relate to parents' depressive and somatic symptoms. Two hundred and seventy three parents of children with mental illness (members of a support and education organization for persons with mental illness) completed questionnaires on their relationship with their child with mental illness. In general, study results showed that attachment, in some cases, helped predict emotional communication and care-giving patterns above and beyond contextual factors, such as extent of demands in care-giving and severity of the child's symptoms. Study results also revealed that parents' communication is one possible explanation for the link between parents' attachment to their child and parents' depressive and somatic symptom reports.